


pumpkin spice and everything nice (versus isovaleric acid)

by AlexSeanchai (EllieMurasaki)



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Based on a Tumblr Post, F/M, Identity Reveal, Kwami Swap, Season/Series 03 Spoilers, Stormy Weather 2 Is Not Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-23
Updated: 2019-02-23
Packaged: 2019-11-04 05:21:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17892263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EllieMurasaki/pseuds/AlexSeanchai
Summary: Ladybug doesn't believe Chat Noir's gym-socks-and-buttered-popcorn aroma is the result of Plagg's Camembert obsession. And she knows she smells sweet, but she also knows she lives, uh,neara bakery; it's nothing to do with Tikki at all.…Well, it's probably going to be a strategic benefit if they know how to handle each other's powers, right?The next morning at school, now…





	pumpkin spice and everything nice (versus isovaleric acid)

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [eau de kwami swap](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/459248) by australet789. 



> The original post:
>
>> Reveal idea in which Ladybug notices Chat smells like Camembert and she doesnt believe is because of Plagg, and when Chat says to her that she smells like cookies she is like “that’s because i live in a- errrr near! A bakery!”
>> 
>> And so them both decide to change kwamis to prove their own point.
>> 
>> Next day in school Alya is curious on why Marinette smells like rotten socks while Nino is asking Adrien when he finally decided to change cheese for cookies as an extra meal
> 
> This picks up after that.

"…I take back everything nasty I ever thought about you," Marinette says. This is not exactly what she meant to say, what she would ever have meant to say on realizing Chat Noir sits in front of her in class, but Adrien Agreste is staring at her, starstruck, and it's a coherent sentence, so she'll take it.

"Uh, sure," says Adrien. He's clearly still processing. (Which, well, so is she, and it's astonishing neither of them is screaming yet, but.) Abruptly he turns away, banging his head on the desk, and again, and Marinette gets down there in time that the third blow lands on her hand instead. "Hey!" he protests.

"You'll scramble your brains," Marinette points out. "You need those."

Adrien rolls his eyes and turns to Nino. "I'm going to screw this up!" he tells him, a desperate note to his voice. "I _cannot_ screw this up!"

Nino looks at Alya. Alya looks at Marinette.

"I don't know either," Marinette says, trying to figure out if it's okay to hug her freaking-out partner. Ladybug wouldn't hesitate with Chat Noir, but the rules might be different for Marinette and—

Adrien is just as touch-starved as Chat Noir. Adrien _is_ Chat Noir.

"You don't understand," Adrien tells Nino. "Everyone loves her! If I screw this up everyone will hate me!"

Chat Noir loves Ladybug. Ladybug is Marinette.

"Take a deep breath, dude," Nino advises.

Adrien…loves Marinette?

Oh.

"Oh," Marinette says, and hugs Adrien from behind because really, how can she not? "Adrien, you're still missing something."

He twists around to look at her; she can't quite let herself think how close their faces are. "Like what?"

"It's not a secret," Marinette assures him. "Everyone else knows." Adrien looks deeply dubious. "Alya, tell him about Operation Secret Garden."

Alya folds her arms. "Tell him yourself, girl."

"You're right," Marinette decides, "that wouldn't really prove it's not a secret, would it? I mean, I tell you everything."

Adrien pulls back from her, frowning at Alya and tweaking the chain around Marinette's neck, from which he must have noticed by now his ring is hanging. (She isn't sure what he's done with her earrings—they are not in his ears—but they must be on his person, because they both know perfectly well that if they were unprepared for an akuma attack, there would certainly be one.) He glances at Marinette. "Is she—?"

Well, there's not much point hiding Rena Rouge's name from him now. Or Carapace's. "Yep." One thousand one one thousand two one thou—

Adrien spins to stare at Nino, then back at Marinette.

"Damn," says Marinette. "I bet myself you'd need more than five seconds."

"Your faith in me is inspiring," Adrien says flatly.

Marinette giggles. "Hey, Rose!" she calls. "Come tell Adrien about Operation Secret Garden!"

Rose starts to speak and Juleka muffles her with one hand and a significant look at Marinette.

"You could tell me yourself," Adrien suggests. He's starting to look less panicky.

She is not convinced she can. "That's no fun." Alix is miming zipped lips, though, and Mylène has chosen to hide behind Ivan. "I need you girls to understand I say this with great affection," she tells the lot of them. "I hate you all."

Adrien snickers.

"Shut it, you," Marinette tells him. "It really isn't a secret, though. I mean—not this part but the important part—Lila knows it."

"Marinette," says Adrien, smiling, "I believe you. Now will you please tell me whatever it is everyone else figured out already?"

She tries. She really does. Her throat seizes up before any words come out.

"Do I really make you that nervous?" Adrien asks quietly.

She nods.

"Really? Even now?"

She nods, a smaller motion.

"You didn't seem to have any problem rallying the class against Darkblade," Adrien tells her, "and he was objectively scarier than I am."

Marinette rolls her eyes. He knows perfectly well what happened there, and truthfully Marinette should have had today's revelation then. ‘What a knightmare', honestly.

This does give her an idea, though. "Glaciator," she tells Adrien. "Papa-Garou."

Adrien stares at her.

"I'm sorry," she adds.

"For what?" Adrien asks, incredulous, and incredulously joyful.

Nothing she can discuss with an audience. Marinette shrugs and tries to nerve herself up to kiss him.

"I, uh." Adrien looks away, suddenly sheepish. "I've never kissed anyone before."

Marinette snorts. "You have so. I've seen photos."

"For work doesn't count," Adrien tells her patiently.

"That's not what I meant," Marinette answers, but she still can't discuss Dark Cupid or Prime Queen with an audi—wait. "Wait. Never?"

Adrien shrugs; he doesn't seem to know whether he wants to gaze lovingly into her eyes or look nervously anywhere else. "Never wanted to till you."

Holy shit, this is actually happening, Marinette thinks, and begins to lean in toward him, even as Adrien begins to lean toward her—

"Ew, Marinette, you smell like gym socks," says Lila, loud and obnoxious and far too close. "New cologne, Adrien?"

"GET LOST, LILA!" Marinette shouts, only just turning in time to point it at Lila instead of Adrien. A moment later, she realizes Adrien did the same thing. Lila stares between them, looking rather like they just clubbed her over the head.

"Lila!" demands Rose. "Why did you stop them?"

"They were finally getting it together!" adds Alix, physically interposing herself between them and Lila, who, because Alix is physically intimidating out of proportion to her height, backs away.

"Ugh," mutters Adrien to Marinette, as Max starts to explain just how long the class has been shipping Adrienette. "Talk about killing the mood."

"I can fix that," Marinette mutters back. "I might have money on canon Ladynoir never—" Adrien gives her a betrayed look. "—but I can change that to, say, next month?"

"That is dishonest, unsporting, and cruel," Adrien tells her. "Let's do it."

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [Dreamwidth](https://alexseanchai.dreamwidth.org/) and [Tumblr](http://alexseanchai.tumblr.com/).


End file.
